Structural frame based on plurality of tetrax structures

Abstract

A structural frame is composed of a series of struts which are arranged in a particular fashion that steers the stress applied to the frame so as to minimize development of tension and maximize the resolution of the stress in terms of compression. The frame is composed of a plurality of unicubes which are twelve equal length struts arranged to form the edges of a cube and eight additional equal length struts extending out from each corner of the cube. Each of the eight outwardly extending struts forming an equal angle with each of the three cube edge struts to which it is connected. The outboard ends of these outwardly extending struts are connected together so that sets of four such outboard strut ends are connected to form a network of these unicubes, which network constitutes the structural frame.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A load bearing structural frame comprising: a plurality of spaced apart tetrax structures, said tetrax structures having four rigid compression bearing struts extending from a common origin, each of said struts in each of said tetrax structures having an end point,   said end points of said struts of eight adjacent ones of said tetrax structures constituting a first set of eight points, there being a plurality of said first set of points,   each of said first sets of eight end points interconnected by a predetermined rigid compression bearing structure,   said predetermined structure having an envelope encompassing one of a second set of predetermined points in said structural frame, each of said second set of points spaced an equal distance from twelve and only twelve adjacent ones of said second set of points.   
     
     
       2. The structural frame of claim 1 wherein: said predetermined structure is a set of interconnecting rigid struts, each of said interconnecting struts connecting end points of struts from separate ones of said tetrax structures.   
     
     
       3. The structural frame of claim 1 wherein: each of said tetrax structure struts is substantially 109.47° from each of the three connecting tetrax structure struts.   
     
     
       4. The structural frame of claim 2 wherein: each of said tetrax structure struts is substantially 109.47° from each of the three connecting tetrax structure struts.   
     
     
       5. The structural frame of claim 1 wherein: each of said tetrax structure struts is substantially equal in length to one another thereby constituting a tetrax.   
     
     
       6. The structural frame of claim 3 wherein: each of said tetrax structure struts is substantially equal in length to one another thereby constituting a tetrax.   
     
     
       7. The structural frame of claim 4 wherein: each of said tetrax structure struts is substantially equal in length to one another thereby constituting a tetrax.   
     
     
       8. The structural frame of claim 2 wherein: said predetermined structure is a cubic frame.   
     
     
       9. The structural frame of claim 4 wherein: said predetermined structure is a cubic frame.   
     
     
       10. The structural frame of claim 7 wherein: said predetermined structure is a cubic frame.   
     
     
       11. A load bearing structural frame comprising: a plurality of interconnected tetrax frames and cubic frames, each tetrax frame having four rigid compression bearing struts extending from a common origin and each cubic frame having twelve rigid compression bearing edge struts, all of said cubic frame and tetrax frame struts being substantially equal to one another,   said cubic frames and tetrax frames being interconnected such that the outboard end of each tetrax strut is connected to a corner of a cubic frame and the corner of each cubic frame is connected to the outboard end of a tetrax strut,   whereby four struts extend from the center point of each tetrax frame and four struts extend from the corner of each cubic frame, and   whereby the set of points determined by the center point of each cubic frame is such that each member of said set of points is spaced an equal distance from twelve and only twelve adjacent members of said set of points.   
     
     
       12. A building block for a load bearing structural frame comprising: a twelve rigid compression bearing strut cubic frame having eight corners, and   eight outwardly extending rigid compression bearing struts, one each extending outwardly from a separate one of said eight corners, each of said outwardly extending struts having an outer end.   
     
     
       13. The building block of claim 12 wherein each of said twelve struts is equal in length. 
     
     
       14. The building block of claim 12 wherein the angles between each of said outwardly extending struts and the three cubic struts to which it is connected are all equal. 
     
     
       15. The building block of claim 14 wherein each of said twelve struts is equal in length. 
     
     
       16. A load bearing structural frame comprising: a plurality of said building blocks of claim 12 wherein each outer end of each of said outwardly extending struts is connected to three other outer ends of said outwardly extending struts.   
     
     
       17. The method of constructing a load bearing structural frame comprising the steps of: selecting a set of rigid compression bearing struts having an appropriate strength and substantially equal in size to one another,   creating a set of unicubes from said set of struts, each unicube having twelve cubic struts and eight diagonal struts extending outwardly from each of the eight corners of the cubic struts, each of said eight outwardly extending struts having an outboard end,   assembling said set of unicubes by connecting said outboard ends of one outwardly extending strut of four separate unicubes such that the outwardly extending struts of each corner of each unicube forms one strut of a tetrax with three outwardly extending struts of three other adjacent unicubes.   
     
     
       18. The method of manufacturing a load bearing structural frame comprising: selecting an appropriate set of substantially equal rigid compression bearing struts, connecting a first subset of said struts into a set of cubic frames,   connecting a second subset of said struts into a set of tetrax frames, there being approximately twice as many tetrax frames as cubic frames,   connecting an end point of each strut of each tetrax frame to a corner of a cubic frame and connecting each corner of a cubic frame to an end point of a tetrax frame.   
     
     
       19. The method of manufacturing a load bearing structural frame comprising: selecting an appropriate set of approximately equal rigid compression bearing struts,   assembling a first set of said struts into a set of tetrax structures,   assembling a second set of said struts into a second set of predetermined structures, having eight predetermined corner points, and   connecting an end of a strut of eight separate ones of said tetrax structures to said eight corner points of each of said second set of structures, said step of connecting including connecting each tetrax strut end to a corner point of one of said second set of structures.